Aciphex? Is This Common Medication For Celiacs?

I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease about 8 months ago based on various blood tests with minor indicators, liver tests which showed very slight hepatitus, and finally an EGD. My GI Doctor was convinced that I had it, although I have never had any physical symptom.

I started my Gluten-Free diet (I have not cheated), and went in for a follow up EGD today. My doctor was convinced we would see improvements, but visually nothing seemed to have improved. Of course he implied to my wife that I was cheating on my diet. Had I been coherant, I would have told him off.

Now he wants me to take Aciphex once a day claiming that I must have Acid Reflux problems due to all the inflamation that I still have. And just like the Celiac Disease, I have never had any outward symptoms/problems with anything even resembling heartburn.

I've seen the EGD pictures, and I can't deny that something is not right. Is Acid Reflux a common problem related to Celiac Disease? Is Aciphex a common medication for Celiacs?

My dr. told me the same thing after my endoscopy, and I have taken Aciphex for about a year now. It really helped me eat better and made the bloating in my stomach go down, but I do have some abdominal bloating and pain now and I'm wondering if that's the result of taking a PPI drug or just a coincidence. I would say try it and see how you feel. Like you, I didn't realize how bad my stomach inflammation had become until AFTER I took Aciphex, and saw how much better I felt.

Even after avoiding gluten for several months I still had my old familar 'instant reflux' (food came up easily after every meal unless I stayed perfectly vertical for 3-4 hours and did not overeat a bite) and acid reflux after consuming citrus, tomatoes, coffee and alcohol. HOWEVER when I learned I also was casein (milk protein) intolerant and cut out all dairy, my longterm acid reflux disappeared. Now even when I overeat, what goes down, STAYS down.
BURDEE

OK, first, a disclaimer: I am not a doctor, I have no scientific studies to back up my claims. I only can speak to what I have read and experienced. The following is not advice, only my opinion.

It was actually heartburn that got my family doctor to finally refer me to a GI specialist. In the process of doing the endoscopy to try to find the cause and severity of my heartburn, he discovered I had Celiac disease! Even he later told me the two are not related! I disagree!!!

What is heartburn? It is a physical manifestation of acid reflux. When the acid from your stomach back-feeds into your esophagus, it can produce pain. The lining of the stomach can take the acidity, the esophagus can't.

Most doctors seem to think the way to cure this problem is to reduce the amount of acid in your stomach. While this may be the correct approach in some instances, in most cases, this only masks the underlying problem. By reducing the amount of acid (or more correctly, the acidity), you no longer "feel" the reflux because it is not so corrosive to the esophagus. However, the reflux is still occurring!

Here comes the wild part! The reason the reflux is still occurring and the reason it was occurring in the first place is because there is not ENOUGH acid in the stomach!!!

Stomachs need acid to properly break down food so the small intestine can absorb nutrients from it. One of the things that can happen if there is insufficient acid is bloating. It is the bloating and gas build up from improper digestion that is the root cause of acid reflux (there are rare exceptions - I'm speaking generally here!).

After going on the gluten-free diet for several months, I tried weening myself off the Aciphex several times with no success. Finally, after exhaustive reading about this whole topic, I began taking Betaine HCL. This ADDS acid to your stomach. I again went off the Aciphex and this time I stayed off! I have not had heartburn ever since! It's been about 8 or 9 months now.

So why do most doctors continue prescribing Aciphex, Nexium, Prevacid, et. al.? Some suggest the doctors are getting kickbacks from the drug companies! I think that is outlandish! Doctors are part of an upstanding profession and would never stoop to such corrupt practices. So why do they prescribe these medications, rather than first testing for stomach acidity? Gee, I really don't know!

I have been given Aciphex also, and I didn't think I needed it. I took it for a few weeks and then decided no more. Man was I sorry. I had a very gassy belly and kept burping (I know TMI). I started taking it again, and am feeling so good. I take it daily, and have been told I will probably have to continue to take it the rest of my life.

I am VERY interested in this issue. I've been gluten-free for about two weeks now, and would LOVE to get off of my Aciphex. But every time I try, my stomach feels like it's on fire. Sometimes I even have to take two a day. The odd thing is that if I sleep long enough to feel rested, the reflux is worse. Soy milk helps ease the discomfort, which is odd, I think. Anyway, the basic fact is that if I go off of the Aciphex, I'm no longer constipated. If I'm on it, my tummy feels better, but can't go to the bathroom to save my life. Sorry if that's TMI! I also have gastroparesis....a condition where your stomach doesn't empty out the food - it just stays there and rots, and you get dehydrated, and malnourished. I would be curious to know if there are any others who have the gastroparesis along with the celiac disease.

None of the above info is probably helpful....I just was interested to know that there are others with the reflux problem. Thank goodness there IS Aciphex, eh? :-)

Take care,
Brenda

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~Brenda

Celiac, gastroparesis, PCOD, heart problems, pacemaker.

Diagnosed 7-12-04 via bloodwork. Never had a biopsy, doc didn't think it was necessary (said I would know just by going gluten-free).